Why Jeremiah Smith's Heisman Claim Is Becoming Impossible to Deny

By Vinaya · October 4, 2026

Jeremiah Smith has a way of making a big game look routine, and his afternoon in Iowa City on October 3 was no exception. Ohio State, ranked No.

5, beat No. 14 Iowa 31-14, and Smith finished with 11 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns.

Afterward he made his case to Heisman voters, a rare pitch for a wide receiver in a race that usually goes to quarterbacks.

Program history rewritten in a single afternoon

The numbers from Saturday put his career in perspective. With those 11 catches, Smith became Ohio State's all-time leader in receptions (207), receiving yards (3,381) and receiving touchdowns (36).

Few players at a program as storied as Ohio State's hold all three records, and fewer still do it before their career is over.

He did it with a quarterback in rhythm. Julian Sayin went 20 of 27 for 324 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Smith.

A second straight 200-yard game

Saturday was Smith's second consecutive game with 200 or more receiving yards, and his third game of the season with at least two touchdowns. That kind of back-to-back production is hard to dismiss when voters compare candidates, and it makes the argument for him as more than a counting-stats receiver.

The counter-argument

Not everyone will welcome a player making the case for himself. The Heisman has traditionally gone to quarterbacks and running backs on teams that win every week, and a wide receiver has to be exceptional every week to overcome that.

Individual numbers also depend on how often the offense chooses to throw to him, and Ohio State has a quarterback who is producing too. Smith's candidacy will rest on how Ohio State fares, not only on his own stat line.

What comes next

Smith has already rewritten the school's receiving records. The Heisman is a different kind of record to chase, because it depends on how Ohio State finishes the season as much as on how he plays. If he keeps producing like this while the Buckeyes keep winning, voters will have a hard time looking elsewhere.